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Moakley v. Smallwood
Citations: 730 So. 2d 286; 1999 Fla. App. LEXIS 3456; 1999 WL 157375Docket: No. 98-398
Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida; March 23, 1999; Florida; State Appellate Court
In post-dissolution proceedings, the former wife subpoenaed her ex-husband and two of his former attorneys, including Sheri Smallwood, to compel the production of an original note awarded to her in the final judgment. Smallwood testified that she did not have the note, and due to short notice, she was unable to be excused from attending a hearing 50 miles away. The trial court imposed monetary sanctions against the former wife and her counsel, finding no reasonable justification for the subpoena issued to Smallwood. The former wife appealed, arguing that the subpoena was necessary for a pending New York proceeding to reestablish a lost note. However, the appeal did not present this rationale during the initial trial, nor did the motion specify such a purpose, referring instead to a post-dissolution motion to compel. The appellate court determined that without a transcript, the trial court's findings were considered established facts. The former wife contended that there was no legal authority for the monetary sanctions and claimed that this issue could be raised as a fundamental error on appeal. The appellate court acknowledged that the trial court viewed the subpoena as unwarranted, justifying the sanctions. Although the former wife sought to highlight perceived conflicts with previous cases regarding inherent powers to impose sanctions, the appellate court found no direct conflict and expressed reluctance to certify such a conflict given the lack of a transcript and preservation of the issues. Additionally, the court noted that the former wife's new arguments were not preserved due to her abandonment of a rehearing motion in favor of filing a notice of appeal.